Strengthening IJC Connections -- A Profile of Leslie O.

‘When you are asked to serve, you have to step up,’ says Leslie Oversteyns, who has just joined the IJC Board. She had been asked before, but felt she didn’t have the time to devote to the position until recently.  Her children having ‘flown the coop’ her life and work commitments are more flexible.

Leslie first moved to Europe from the US in 1989 and has lived and worshiped in Geneva, London and Amsterdam before moving to Belgium. The Oversteyns family joined IJC in 2004 and became very active with the Hebrew School. Professionally, Leslie worked for the GATT (now the WTO) in their Information and Media Relations Division and for IATA as their Marketing Manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa prior to starting her family.

Leslie feels that while many of us are interested in IJC, we are not as involved as we should or could be.  She would like us to find more young families as they are critical to the lifeblood of a community.  ‘I think IJC needs a unifying goal to truly be a home to all of us. We need to find the right balance between worship, cultural events and other activities to bring us more together. And this is an area where I hope to make a contribution.’

The Oversteyns lead a cosmopolitan life while residing in the lush farmlands of Flanders.  Leslie is fluent in French and Dutch but finds her command of English is not what it used to be.. (I disagree!). Living in a very Flemish environment, she finds IJC an important connection to the bigger picture. What she loves about IJC is that there are families just like hers who are Jewish/non-Jewish; and multilingual, which she finds to be very nourishing. 

The IJC is so welcoming.  ‘We welcome all those looking for a spiritual home and for connection. But we need to knit the connections in a broader and deeper way.’

So watch out for Leslie’s contributions in the coming year….